


You'll Never See The End of the Road When You're Travelling With Me

by Velocity_Owl87



Series: Padawan Qui-Gon and Master Obi-Wan [2]
Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars Prequel Trilogy
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Alternate Universe - Everyone Lives/Nobody Dies, Alternate Universe - Role Reversal, Force Visions, Gen or Pre-Slash, Introspection, Mentor/Protégé, Multi, Slice of Life, Teacher-Student Relationship
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-03-08
Updated: 2019-03-08
Packaged: 2019-11-13 15:13:17
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply, Underage
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,578
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18034097
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Velocity_Owl87/pseuds/Velocity_Owl87
Summary: Sequel to "Unexpected Connections" in which Qui-Gon is struggling with  visions and feelings involving his master, Obi-Wan.He pulls away in an effort to deal with them, but Master Tahl decides to intervene for both his sake and Obi-Wan's, changing the visions he's got.But for better or worse, it remains to be seen.





	You'll Never See The End of the Road When You're Travelling With Me

**Author's Note:**

> I wanted to write Qui-Gon as a teen and a conflicted and somewhat softer than canon here. He cares a lot for Obi-Wan and Ilum gave him the glimpses that he wants desperately to avoid, hence his actions. I did put the underage tag even though it comes at the end and it is brief.

Qui-Gon opened his eyes and sighed heavily as the heavy weight of the vision wasn’t dispelled. No matter how long or how much he meditated or worked through the katas and forms, the weight was still there. He didn’t want to think about the possible future in Naboo in that factory. He didn’t want to think about how he would have to make a choice to prevent it from happening. 

He didn’t want to have so much responsibility at fifteen. Even though he was a Jedi, the idea made his stomach churn. He couldn’t be near Obi-Wan until he made his peace with the snatches of the vision that he had gotten glimpses of in Ilum. He needed time and when he was finally able to come to terms with that, he’d be able to be near his beloved Master again. 

He rubbed his face and flopped down carelessly onto the grass, his long limbs sprawled out every which way. He was still getting used to his growth spurts, something that his Master was working hard to help him with. No sooner had he gotten his center of gravity back again, he would shoot up and they’d have to start over again. He was already seeing eye to eye with Obi-Wan and they were sure he would grow a bit more before he was fully grown. 

He bit off a grin at Obi-Wan’s face the moment that Master Che had given them the information after his last physical. No master really liked to be looking up at his Padawan and Obi-Wan was no doubt going to do that for quite awhile yet. Qui-Gon was definitely going to have to sit down more often or else Obi-Wan would have a permanent crick in his neck. The idea did make him laugh quietly. At least until a shadow fell over him.

“Master Tahl!” He greeted his Master’s friend, scrambling to sit up and offer her the proper greeting when she waved her hand and gracefully sat down beside him. He waited until she was settled before he lay back down on the grass and closed his eyes again.

The silence was a companionable one and Qui-Gon felt himself relax in her presence and fully sink himself into the Living Force like he hadn’t been able to in weeks. He sighed happily, breathing in the green and the scent of Juniper and Mint that always seemed to cling to her, and remind him of quiet childhood afternoons when Obi-Wan had to be out. It was such a contrast to the clean cotton and sea water that clung to his Master and made him think of  _ home. _

At the thought of his Master’s rain-water eyes and warm smile, he jolted out of his near doze to find Tahl looking at him thoughtfully. He swallowed hard and sat up, rubbing his eyes to brush away the sleep. His cybernetic eye took a bit of time to adjust before it came back into focus to see Tahl’s face crease in concern. 

“I don’t want to pry, Qui-Gon. But I have been guarding your dreams and I have to ask: What is worrying at you? What did you see in Ilum that you keep coming back to it?”

~*~*~*~*~

Obi-Wan was surprised to see the mug of tea appear at his elbow, the rich fragrance of the Hosin brew he favoured breaking up his research and thoughts. He looked up from the flimsi book he had been taking notes from and looked up to see his friend, Master Tahl, smiling at him and carrying a matching mug of tea. 

“Hey. You look like you could use this.”  She stated simply, making him smile weakly at her perception and put down his pen. He took the mug and inhaled deeply, letting the scent of the fragrant tea calm him. 

She sat down across from him then. “And you also look like you could use a friend. May I join you?”

Obi-Wan nodded, smiling ruefully. “Is it that obvious?”

Tahl put her mug down and propped her chin on her hand, smiling at him in lieu of an answer. 

“To the people that know you, yes. So out with it. What’s bothering you?”

Obi-Wan sighed, rubbing his forehead roughly with his fingertips as he gathered his thoughts together to give Tahl a coherent reply. She was concerned about him and he must have been in bad shape if she took it upon herself to intervene. 

“I’m worried about Qui-Gon, to tell the truth.”  Obi-Wan admitted softly, taking a long sip of tea to fortify himself. He wished he had something stronger, but he was still quite afraid of Master Jocasta and wouldn’t dream of being so disrespectful in the archives. So tea it would have to be. 

Tahl’s yellow and green eyes widened slightly at that and she straightened up to listen to him. 

“I thought he was at the center of it. I was going to talk to you about him, actually.”

Obi-Wan looked at her sharply. “Have you noticed anything different about him? He’s been very shut off from me, actually. It’s almost as if he’s been avoiding me. And I can’t figure out why.”

Tahl frowned as she thought about what Obi-Wan was telling her. She had noticed the way that Qui-Gon was pulling away from his friends and from Obi-Wan. It was subtle, but it was still obvious that something was going on. It had been the main reason why she had sought her friend’s apprentice out to maybe get an idea as to what could be the reason for his withdrawal. She chewed on her lower lip as she tried to find the words to frame her suspicions and possibly reconcile them with the earlier conversation she had with Qui-Gon.

“Could it be he’s developed an attachment to someone?” Tahl presented, lowering her voice in deference to where they were and the subject matter she was alluding to. “Say, another padawan or maybe...His own Master?”

Obi-Wan simply sat as if turned to stone. Surely that wasn’t the case! Out of all situations, the idea of Qui-Gon being attracted to him was completely out of the question. 

It took him a few moments to get his throat working enough to speak. 

“Surely not, Tahl! I mean, I’ve known him since he was a child! I was the one that found him and brought him to the temple! I’m like a father to him! You must be joking!”

Obi-Wan spluttered, finally managing to find his voice after sitting there trying to absorb the shock of what he had just been told.

Tahl chewed on her lip and shook her head.

“You may think of him as your child, but he may not see you in that way. And he's struggling with his feelings. As well as visions.”

Obi-Wan's head shot up at that last remark.

“Qui-Gon had visions? Why didn't he come to me to discuss them?”

Tahl looked down and picked up her mug again. She drank some of her tea before she answered him. It was a delicate situation and she didn't want to betray Qui-Gon's confidence also. But she couldn't remain quiet. Not with what she knew.

“They involve you to some extent. When he was in Ilum, Qui-Gon got glimpses of the future. A future without you in it. And he's obviously distraught about what he saw.”

Obi-Wan paled at her remark. 

“He saw my death?” He whispered, his heart aching for his padawan having to grapple with that for the past year. No wonder why Qui-Gon had slowly withdrawn from him as he tried to come to terms with what he saw.

Tahl nodded. 

“He saw it and he saw a way to stop it. But he didn't tell me how. Only that there was a way to do it. And I'm worried it might involve sacrificing himself.”

Tahl added, making Obi-Wan gran quietly. Of course Qui-Gon would send that as the only way! 

“He’s so sunk into the Living Force. So soft. Of course he’d see that as the only way.” Obi-Wan laughed humorlessly at that, turning to look at Tahl. His expression was wistful as he looked at his friend. 

“Master Dooku never wanted him as part of our lineage. He felt that he was too soft. Too kind to do the work that we do. But I ignored him. I wanted him  _ because _ of that tenderness. And I have never regretted it.”

Tahl listened to this while silently drinking her tea. She recalled those two clashing when it came time for Obi-Wan to pick an apprentice. Dooku had favoured Bruck Chun for Obi-Wan’s choice over the awkward and somewhat shy Qui-Gon. He had just entered his first growth spurt and seemed to be a spindly colt. Coupled with the cybernetic eye, he was getting overlooked by many and was sure to be going to the Agricorps until Obi-Wan had bypassed Bruck Chun and chosen him. 

It had caused a stir and that had been the start of the coolness between Dooku and Obi-Wan. Qui-Gon hadn’t know. Obi-Wan had made sure to shield him from the worst of it because he loved the boy. Even then, it was obvious he doted on him. Yet it wasn’t quite attachment, so it was unremarked upon. 

But now, Tahl could see that it had already veered into that territory and despite the tennets she had been raised by, that she was instilling in Bant, she couldn’t bring herself to admonish or report her friend. Obi-Wan hadn’t ever been the same ever since he had nearly been killed by Xanatos Du Crion. To see him develop a connection with someone else showed her that he was capable of healing. 

So she had watched and made her choice, only stepping in when she felt the need to. 

Like now. 

“Then do all you can to not lose him, Obi. I know you care for him. I know you’re attached as is he. Don’t let the Code get in the way of what you both have. It would be a waste and a shame if that were to happen.”

Obi-Wan blinked at Tahl’s impassioned words, his ears turning a dull red once the implications hit him. 

“The Code-”

“Damn the Code and use your heart and head, Obi-Wan! That boy depends on you! Don’t let him down. That’s all I ask not just as a fellow Master, but as your friend. Be gentle, my friend.”

Tahl pleaded quietly, making Obi-Wan open his mouth for a rebuttal that was lost when Bant and Qui-Gon’s class came into the Archive. 

“Alright. I promise Tahl. I won’t hurt him. But I will need your help. I don’t think I can do this alone.” Obi-Wan murmured, feeling both exhausted and stunned at what had just happened, making Tahl smile in sympathy. 

“Of course I will. You can always count on me, my friend.”

~*~*~*~*~*~

Obi-Wan wondered if the Force or Tahl herself had a hand in what happened next between himself and Qui-Gon.

He had been discussing Qui-Gon’s latest essay on the tenets of the Code when his vision flickered and the room went sideways. He barely noticed that Qui-Gon had lost his grip on the glass of water he had been drinking and had collapsed to his knees. All he could see was a woman with soft brown hair singing a blonde haired boy to sleep in a slave hovel somewhere in a sandy planet. 

A boy that shone like a supernova in the Force and stirred both a warning and a yearning in him and Qui-Gon himself. 

_ “Anakin.” _

The name was a whisper that he only just caught before the vision ended.

“Tatooine.”

His vision cleared as he turned to look at Qui-Gon, who was shakily getting to his feet with the help of the chair and the table, the glass lying there in a puddle of water, forgotten. 

“Is that were he is? The child?” Obi-Wan questioned, picking up his cold tea and drinking it in an effort to ease his nerves.

Qui-Gon nodded. “I wasn’t sure the first time. But now, I recognise the buildings.” 

Obi-Wan put his mug down and sighed heavily rubbing his burning eyes roughly. 

“We have to tell the Council. It’s a sign from the Force.” Obi-Wan muttered, trying to not alarm Qui-Gon over the circumstances. They had shared a vision. Without touch and without bond bleed through. Something that wasn’t supposed to even be possible. 

Qui-Gon took a deep breath and exhaled loudly. “So when do we go to the Council?”

Obi-Wan stood up. “Now. We can’t waste time. Let’s go.”

~*~*~*~*~

Obi-Wan knew that the visions that Qui-Gon had been so worried about changed when he woke up to a steaming mug of Hosin by his head and Qui-Gon making breakfast for the both of them in the small kitchenette. The shy smiles were back and Qui-Gon didn’t seem to shy away from contact anymore, making Obi-Wan thank the Force that they had gone to the Council when they had the shared vision. 

He didn’t think that they needed to address the situation, but Qui-Gon obviously felt the need to, he found as they went to the salles to train. He didn’t think that it would happen the same day that the Hosin had appeared, but he was surprised by his thoughtful apprentice yet again. 

They had just gotten into training gear when Qui-Gon took a deep breath and faced him square on.

He was nervous and his eyes, mismatched silver and blue widened when he turned to look at Obi-Wan.

“Master…” 

Obi-Wan waited, not wanting to rush Qui-Gon when he obviously needed to clear the air between them.

“Master, I wanted to apologise for my aloofness and isolation from you. I was...I was overwhelmed by what the visions had shown me and I didn’t know how to cope.”

Qui-Gon sighed, clearly irritated with himself. “I tried meditating and talking to Master Yoda and things didn’t improve. It wasn’t until I talked to Master Tahl and the shared vision that it made sense. I don’t want to ever have that distance between us again.”

Obi-Wan was taken aback by the revelations. He hadn’t ever assumed that Master Yoda would have been so utterly  _ useless _ . Despite the cryptic remarks about how he was handling Qui-Gon, Yoda had been supportive. 

Or had he? Obi-Wan pushed that away to examine later. Right now, he was furious and sorry that his padawan had floundered, isolated and alone until Tahl had reached out because Obi-Wan couldn’t reach him. And he was utterly grateful that she had been there when he couldn’t. 

He owed her and he made a mental note to pay her when he could.

“There’s nothing to forgive, Qui-Gon. I just am more concerned that you couldn’t come to me with your problems.” Obi-Wan replied, making Qui-Gon blush.

Right before he moved to kiss Obi-Wan. 

It was a quick and chaste kiss, but it made Obi-Wan burn as if he had been taken right on the salle floor. 

“I love you, Master. And I tried to hide it and abide by the Code. Especially once the visions came. But now...It’s not the same. You won’t die without hearing me say it. I love you.”

Qui-Gon blurted out before dropping the training sabre and running out of the salle, leaving Obi-Wan standing alone, with no clue what to do next.

END

 


End file.
